My cousin, Jess (and husband, Andy--I won't leave him out!), just gave birth to a gorgeous 8 1/2 pound little girl on Sunday. With original birth plans (an unmedicated birth in an holistic setting, going home no later than 12 hours postpartum) out the window as an emergency C-Section was ordered, all I could think was, "Come hell or high water, this baby had better be a champion breastfeeder..."

And let me tell you, that little monkey did not disappoint!

Running into that hospital room, I was the only one who seemed wired. Jess, Andy, Aunt Debby, Uncle Bobby, and my other cousin, Jared, were all as mellow as could be, eating lunch and laughing. And that baby? Hey, it was Emily's lunchtime, too!

Positioning Jess in a comfy football hold, the baby latched on immediately and fed for almost an hour--so happy, so content. I showed her how to make a sandwich with her breast so the latch would be easier, comparing it to how we make our sandwiches compact to "latch" onto them. (You've got to love analogies...) Once they both settled in to the feed, my Aunt asked Jess if she wanted anything to eat..."Sure. Actually, can I have a sandwich?"

And so arrived my favorite moment of the day...My baby cousin, holding and breastfeeding her 24-hour-old baby with her right arm, eating a chicken and provolone sandwich with her left, unfazed by the entire process. Simply beautiful.

Researchers have discovered that breastfeeding is not associated with an increased risk of disease flares and may actually protect against an symptoms in moms with inflammatory bowel disease

In the American Journal of Gastroenterology, Dr. Dana Moffatt, from the University of Manitoba in Winnipeg, Canada, states, "Breastfeeding has been shown to have many beneficial effects on child health and development, and as a result it is recommended as the primary form of nutrition for at least the first 24 weeks of an infant's life." Interestingly, results of a prior study suggested that women with inflammatory bowel disease are less likely to breastfeed than other women. It also showed that breastfeeding among women with ulcerative colitis or Crohn's disease is associated with an increased risk of symptom flare-ups.

The team of researchers set out to prove the previous study wrong. They examined breastfeeding rates in women with inflammatory bowel disease, and the association of breastfeeding with symptom flares by studying 132 women with ulcerative colitis or Crohn's disease who had previously given birth and completed a breastfeeding questionnaire. They found that 82% of the participants with Crohn's disease and 84% of those with ulcerative colitis had initiated breastfeeding. The authors of the study pointed out that these numbers are larger than the 77% of women in the general population who breastfeed.

Twenty six percent of those who breastfed their babies experienced a symptom flare within 1 year of giving birth, compared with 29% of those who did not breastfeed their babies. It is important to note that the risk of symptom flares was not related to age at pregnancy, duration of disease, or socioeconomic status.

Dr. Moffat's team concludes that "this study provides reassurance to women and their physicians that breastfeeding in the setting of inflammatory bowel disease is feasible, successful and possibly protective with respect to disease activity in the postpartum year."

A 26-year-old North Dakota mom accused of breastfeeding her 6-week-old baby while drunk has pled guilty to child neglect. When sentenced on felony charges in August, Stacey Anvarinia may face up to five years in prison. However, Judge Sonja Clapp says that Anvarinia will not have to register as an offender against children.

Police officers responded to a domestic disturbance call at Anvarinia's home on April 13. They saw Anvarinia breastfeeding while intoxicated. Alcohol consumed by breastfeeding mothers can be absorbed into an infant's system, and Anvarinia's levels weren't low.

This is the first such case prosecuted in North Dakota. I'll report more as August rolls around. Stay tuned!

According to a new study published in The Journal of Human Capital, breastfed babies are more likely to do well in high school and to attend college than infants who were primarily bottle fed.

The authors of the research, Professors Joseph Sabia from the American University, a professor of public policy focusing on health economics, and Daniel Rees, an economics professor from the University of Colorado Denver, studied 126 children from 59 families. They compared siblings who were breastfed as babies to others who were not, taking into account some other factors (i.e. maternal intelligence and the quality of the home environment), which are very difficult to measure.

The study found that breastfeeding was associated with an increase in high school grade point averages and an increase in the probability of college attendance. Says Sabia, "The results of our study suggest that the cognitive and health benefits of breastfeeding may lead to important long-run educational benefits for children. But this is just a start. Much work remains to be done to establish a definitive causal link." He also points out that the study was the first to use sibling data in order to examine the effect of breastfeeding on high school completion and college attendance.

Rees states that "by focusing on differences between siblings, we can rule out the possibility that family-level factors such as socioeconomic status are driving the relationship between having been breastfed and educational attainment."

Last week, legislation which would protect the rights of breastfeeding moms who return to the workplace was reintroduced in Congress.

Representative Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) and Senator Jeff Merkley (D-OR) co-sponsored the Breastfeeding Promotion Act. The intention is to provide a national policy to keep mothers, their children, and their communities healthy. It includes five provisions: to amend the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to protect breastfeeding women from being fired or discriminated against in the workplace; to provide tax incentives for businesses that establish private lactation areas in the workplace; to provide for a performance standard to ensure breast pumps are safe and effective; to allow breastfeeding equipment and lactation services to be tax deductible for families; and to protect the privacy of breastfeeding mothers by ensuring they have break time and a private place to pump. For more information, visit the US Breastfeeding Committee Web site

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For many moms, breastfeeding went off without a glitch. For others, it was a harrowing time, but they plugged through. So, let's have it! Tell all about your first two weeks of your breastfeeding experience! We want to know the good, bad, and the ugly...

A new study shows that moms who drink a large amount of fructose-sweetened beverages during breastfeeding may have children (mostly sons) who are more susceptible to becoming overweight and developing type 2 diabetes.

One author of the study, Eduardo Spinedi, PhD, of the Neuroendocrinology Research Unit at the Multidisciplinary Institute of Cell Biology in La Plata, Buenos Aires, Argentina, conducted his research in rats and found that the first male offspring had metabolic endocrine disorders in adulthood, even though they ate a normal diet with no extra fructose. Interestingly, results are available only for the male offspring. Males born from the rats given fructose during breastfeeding had the most obvious abnormalities; they had increased food intake and body weight from days 49 to 60. In addition, they also had increased blood levels of the hormone, leptin, which is associated with obesity. They also had high insulin levels. One author stated that this is “a clear indicator of already developed illness such as type 2 diabetes. Based on our study and others, we advise that pregnant and breastfeeding mothers consume a balanced diet with low fructose intake, to help prevent obesity in their children."

Only one short year ago, the world was blown away by news that transgender Thomas "Pregnant Man" Beatie, had given birth to a little girl. Well, last week he balanced the sexes in his household by delivering a baby boy.

Now, here's the best part...Nancy Beatie, Thomas' wife, will be breastfeeding the new baby, just as she did with their daughter. Many people question how this is possible if Nancy had never delivered any babies. The answer is simple: she induced lactation. This situation is clearly the most interesting as both partners have very physical roles in helping their baby to thrive, but the truth is that adoptive moms do it all the time.

So, the moral of the story? Never say never!

This past February, I reported a study showing that breastfeeding may lessen multiple sclerosis relapse and, as it's been four months, it's time for an update. This week, the researchers of the study brought us some additional information. They believe that breastfeeding may protect women with multiple sclerosis against relapses, most probably because there is a delay in their return to normal monthly cycles.

The study found that MS patients who nursed their babies for at least two months, exclusively, were less apt to have a relapse within a year of the child's birth than women who did not breastfeed. One of the authors states, "It is well-known that women with MS have fewer relapses during pregnancy and a high risk of relapse in the postpartum period."

Women are advised not to take MS medications during pregnancy or while breastfeeding, so they have to choose between nursing their babies or restarting their treatment. Dr. Annette Langer-Gould, of Kaiser Permanente Southern California in Pasadena, and her colleagues studied 32 pregnant women with MS and 29 pregnant women without MS. Virtually all of the healthy women (96 percent) breastfed their babies. Only 69 percent of the MS patients breastfed. Langer-Gould's research found that 87 percent of the women with MS who did not breastfeed had a relapse, compared to 36 percent of those who gave their babies only breast milk for at least two months.

One of the benefits of breastfeeding is that it delays the return of menstruation. The researchers found that moms who were not getting their periods because they were breastfeeding, were those whose MS symptoms did not return. The authors wrote, "Studies of immunity and breastfeeding, while plentiful, are predominantly focused on breast milk content and health benefits to the infant. Little is known about maternal immunity during breastfeeding." Now they can add this study to that short list.

You know I can't get enough of these stories!

Celebrity Baby Blog recently spoke with Angie Harmon about how her 5-month-old exclusively breastfed baby, Emery Hope, will be her last. Making many of us jealous, whe mentions that Emery is sleeping through the night, but that, in itself, is fairly bittersweet. She states, “The nights of me staying up all night and crying and breastfeeding…are all gone. She’s just about to start with foods and all of that, so this is the last stage where it’s just her and breastmilk. I’m really trying to focus on all these moments and keep them precious, you know? Because once they’re gone, they’re gone.”

What are you thoughts? Do you agree with Angie Harmon's sentiments? Or are you dreaming of the day where you and your baby are ready to hang it all up? Please take my poll!